The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 9 Cancer
The next morning, Gan Guoyang showed the basketball shoes that Gan Youwei had given him the night before to Gan Guohui. Fatty Hui's eyes lit up and he said, "Wow, Avia, great basketball shoes! Did your dad really buy them?"

"Yes. Aiva? What brand is that? Is it famous?"

In the 80s, Nike was still in its infancy, while Adidas's focus was mainly on football.

Converse is the dominant brand of basketball shoes in the United States, while various regions have their own independent brands.

In the late 70s and early 80s, with the booming development of professional sports, various sports equipment companies sprang up all over the United States.

Avia is a footwear and sportswear brand founded in Oregon in 1979. It has grown rapidly and is known for its aerobics shoes, walking shoes, and basketball shoes. It has a significant influence among young people and emerging groups, especially on the West Coast.

"This is the high-top Avia 860 from last year. It has the 'Fast' logo on the tongue and a leather upper, which looks much more sophisticated than canvas shoes. These shoes are really nice, really nice."

"This style is very popular right now, and it's way cooler than Converse."

Gan Guohui played with the new shoes, clearly enamored with them.

Gan Guoyang silently snatched the shoes from Gan Guohui's hands and put them on his own feet, which made Gan Guohui feel very sorry for him: "Oh dear, these are new shoes, and you're wearing them like this~ What a waste."

"What kind of talk is that? What's the point of wearing shoes if you're not going to wear them?"

"Of course it's for collecting! These Avia 860s will definitely become a classic style."

Gan Guoyang knows that many people have a hobby of collecting shoes; sneakers are not meant to be worn, but rather collected as works of art.

"How much do these shoes cost?"

"It'll cost at least $100. Prices are soaring these days, it might be even more expensive. Popular styles like this can sell for $200 and people will still be scrambling to buy them."

This made Gan Guoyang even more puzzled. Where did Gan Youwei buy these shoes, and who recommended them?
Gan Youwei knew absolutely nothing about basketball shoes, and his English was even worse; he could only understand basic greetings and couldn't speak a single word.

After all, he's almost forty years old, has never been exposed to English since childhood, has never received English education, and as a chef, he doesn't need to communicate directly with foreigners, so naturally he has no language needs.

In this era before online shopping, Gan Guoyang felt uneasy thinking about how Gan Youwei had gone through all sorts of trouble and possibly spent a lot of money to buy these sneakers.

He asked Gan Youwei, but Gan Youwei just smiled and didn't say anything, telling his son not to ask any more questions and to just go play ball.

After working at the store for a while in the morning, Gan Guoyang took out the business card Chen Xing had given him and dialed the number of Coach Bobby Bellman.

The dial tone rang for quite a while before someone answered.

"Hello, this is the Excel in Basketball Summer Camp. I'm the team coach, Bobby Bellman. How can I help you?"

The voice on the phone sounded tired and listless, with a hint of impatience.

Training camps like this will definitely get a lot of inquiries from people calling, and constantly answering the same calls is very exhausting.

"I would like to enroll in the Excel Summer Camp. How do I pay the fees and where do I register?"

"The spots for July are already full, so you'll have to wait for the August batch. Leave your name and phone number, and on August 3rd, you can go to the sports center at 2675 Walnut Creek, Mitchell Road to pay and register directly to start your summer camp."

In a barely audible voice, Bellman informed Gan Guoyang of the registration time and address in detail.

After writing it down, Gan Guoyang gave his own name and Gan Guohui's phone number.

"Sunny-Gump? What's that name... By the way, are you enrolling in the children's class or the gifted youth class?"

"I'm 16 years old this year, and I'm in the gifted youth program."

"16 years old? Okay, man, I'm a pretty straightforward guy. If you're 16 and still participating in a fundamentals training camp like ours, you're unlikely to achieve much in basketball. The main players in our junior program are between 10 and 13 years old. Of course, if you just want to experience it, that's perfectly fine. Sorry for my bluntness."

Bellman's words were very blunt, and it was clear that he was not a qualified salesman.

Some parents or children might have hung up the phone, cancelled their registration, or even filed a complaint.

"Oh, Mr. Bellman, how old are you this year?"

"Me? I'm 37 years old."

"At 37, if you're still working as an assistant coach at a youth fundamentals training camp and also doing part-time phone registration, it's probably... not probably, but definitely unlikely that you'll achieve anything significant in the basketball field. Of course, if you're just looking to make a living, that's perfectly fine. Sorry for my bluntness."

Following Bellman's example, Gan Guoyang launched a merciless counterattack.

"Hey! I'm not like that..."

Before Bellman could explain further, Gan Guoyang abruptly hung up the phone.

Gan Guohui, who was watching from the side, was dumbfounded and said, "The coaches at this training camp seem to have no manners... But cousin, how about we go to another summer camp? There are plenty of basketball training camps."

Gan Guoyang shook his head and said, "No, let's join this training camp. I think it's pretty good." At this moment, the shrill ring of the phone rang again. Gan Guohui looked at Gan Guoyang and said, "Is it that coach who just called? Don't answer it."

Gan Guoyang said, "What's there to be afraid of? If he dares to curse at me, I'll curse back. Besides, this is a food order hotline; we can't miss any customer orders."

As he spoke, Gan Guoyang picked up the receiver; it was Chen Xing calling.

"Guoyang! Are you free this afternoon?"

"what's up?"

"Someone has come to challenge us, specifically asking to play a match against us."

"But we've already saved enough money."

"It's not about money. We've become famous on the streets, and people are coming to us wanting to compete with us."

"Sure, I'm free this afternoon. Where would you like to go?"

"25th District, California Avenue, Rochambeau Stadium!"
-
Rochambeau Stadium is named after Sir Sir Georges Rochambeau, a French Marshal who led French troops in support of the American Revolutionary War and defeated British troops in Yorkshire, Virginia, and is therefore considered one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.

This court, like its serious name, is a popular 3-on-3 street venue where veterans often gather.

This place not only has exceptionally talented young players, but also many adults, including former college basketball team members, streetball pros, retired professional athletes, or seasoned basketball enthusiasts.

In short, this represents a high level of play on the streets of San Francisco, and if you want to play a paid match here, it will cost at least $100 per game.

When the trio arrived at the court, they found a large crowd gathered there, some playing on the court and others watching from the sidelines.

That's how it is in high-level matches; there's an audience, and your performance on stage will receive feedback from the audience.

If you play well, people cheer and praise you; if you play poorly, you're bound to be ridiculed and belittled behind your back.

The pressure of the competition is therefore much greater.

The arrival of Gan Guoyang and others caused a small commotion on the field. People's eyes shot towards them like arrows, and those with weaker mental fortitude felt their legs go weak.

A white player wearing a blue vest and white shorts came over to greet Chen Xing and waved to Gan Guoyang.

"Hey, hello, are you Forrest Gump? I'm Steve LaVine, nice to meet you."

LaVine is about the same age as Gan Guoyang. He has a square, broad chin and slightly droopy eyes, which makes him look more mature.

“I invited you guys to play a match. You guys have been making waves at the San Francisco stadium lately, and I’d like to have a friendly exchange,” LaVine said directly.

Gan Guoyang and his two companions have recently won a series of battles on the streets of San Francisco, which has attracted a lot of attention and discussion.

The fact that the three men were of Chinese descent undoubtedly added a lot of buzz to their victory, finally attracting the attention of experts.

Gan Guoyang simply nodded without saying much, and the two teams went onto the field to warm up.

More and more people gathered around the stadium; this was a highly anticipated match.

Before the match started, the three of them gathered on the sidelines to discuss their strategy.

"Who's on the other side? You trying to make more money by taking on high-level matches? I'm not paying you if you lose this match!"

"You're talking nonsense. This competition doesn't make money. Jason contacted me. That Steve LaVine is Karp's son."

Chen Xing's eyes swept over a small old man in a gray sweatshirt on the sidelines. He had a thin face, a hooked nose, and gray hair.

Who is Garp?

"A historian of San Francisco street basketball, and one of the top ten high school basketball players in San Francisco's past."

"Era? What era?"

"The 40s".

"..."

"Never mind his dad, tell me about our opponents and our strategy!"

"Our opponents today are the Cancer team. You two should know from their name that their playing style is like a tumor, it will torment you to the point of wishing you were dead."

(End of this chapter)